MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The West Virginia earned a 6-3 win over Miami (Ohio) on Saturday afternoon at Monongalia County Ballpark to close out Senior Day.
The Mountaineers scored a pair in the first inning and added runs in the second, fourth, fifth and seventh to secure the victory.
WVU finished with six runs on 12 hits with no errors, while the RedHawks tallied three runs on nine hits with no errors. Freshman left-handed pitcher Ben Hampton earned the win, his fourth of the year, while sophomore right-hander Jacob Watters recorded his third save of 2021. Miami’s Sam Bachman took the loss.
Byorick got the Mountaineers (20-23) on the board in the bottom of the first with a two-run double down the right-field line to make it 2-0. After Miami (21-24) cut the lead in half in the second, sophomore outfielder Victor Scott responded with a solo home run in the bottom of the frame to extend the lead to 3-1.
Then, Doanes hit an RBI single up the middle in the fourth to push the Mountaineer lead to three, before the RedHawks tallied a run of their own in the fifth.
In the bottom of the fifth, sophomore catcher/infielder Matt McCormick’s single to left saw junior outfielder Austin Davis race all the way home from first base to make it a 5-2 game. Later, WVU added its final run of the day on a bases-loaded walk in the seventh.
Hampton, meanwhile, allowed two runs on six hits in 6.0 innings of work on Saturday. The De Pere, Wisconsin, native struck out six and walked two on 80 pitches.
After Miami made it 6-3 in the eighth, the Mountaineers used three pitchers to slam the door in the ninth. Junior left-hander Adam Tulloch began the inning, before redshirt sophomore right-hander Noah Short and Watters followed to get the final three outs of the day.
With the win, West Virginia has now won three in a row and improved to 2-1 all-time against Miami.
McCormick finished 3-for-4 with an RBI and run scored, while Scott went 2-for-3 with two runs. Freshman infielder/designated hitter Nathan Blasick also finished with a pair of hits, while Byorick drove in three.
“This appears to be the best we’ve played all year,” Mazey said. “I’ve said this before: In a normal season, we usually catch our stride around the halfway point, but it seemed like (adversity) slowed our timeline of when we catch fire down a little bit. But it seems like we’re doing it right now.”
Next up, the Mountaineers battle Dayton in a Sunday doubleheader at Monongalia County Ballpark. The action begins at noon with Game 2 set to commence approximately 30 minutes following the conclusion of Game 1.
Of note, Sunday’s games are scheduled for two seven-inning contests.
Rifle’s Smoyer added to USA National Futures Team
Sophomore Calista Smoyer of the West Virginia rifle team was named to the USA National Futures Team.
“I’m really excited for Calista to qualify for the National Futures Team,” said Coach Jon Hammond. “She had an exceptional season in air rifle and her season average reflects that. To have the second highest air rifle average of American students is very impressive, and it’s great recognition of all the work she put in this year.”
Smoyer qualified by being in the top two NCAA averages for air rifle (596.56) for Americans and she was fourth overall with two international students ahead of her.
Smoyer tied the Women’s Air Rifle highest 2021 season score of 598 with Kentucky’s Mary Tucker.
Athletes remain members of the National Futures Team for a term of one year from when the qualify, except for the coach/committee selections whose term will be on a case-by-case basis.
